Fanti Laura, Pimpinelli Sergio
Istituto Pasteur, Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, Dipartimento di Genetica e Biologia molecolare, Università La Sapienza, 00185 Roma, Italy.
Curr Opin Genet Dev. 2008 Apr;18(2):169-74. doi: 10.1016/j.gde.2008.01.009. Epub 2008 Mar 10.
HP1 (heterochromatin protein 1) is a nonhistone chromosomal protein first discovered in Drosophila melanogaster because of its association with heterochromatin. Numerous studies have shown that such a protein plays a role in heterochromatin formation and gene silencing in many organisms, including fungi and animals. Cytogenetic and molecular studies, performed in Drosophila and other organisms, have revealed that HP1 associates with heterochromatin, telomeres and multiple euchromatic sites. There is increasing evidence that the different locations of HP1 are related to multiple different functions. In fact, recent work has shown that HP1 has a role not only in heterochromatin formation and gene silencing, but also in telomere stability and in positive regulation of gene expression.
异染色质蛋白1（HP1）是一种非组蛋白染色体蛋白，最初在黑腹果蝇中被发现，因其与异染色质相关。大量研究表明，这种蛋白在包括真菌和动物在内的许多生物体的异染色质形成和基因沉默中发挥作用。在果蝇和其他生物体中进行的细胞遗传学和分子研究表明，HP1与异染色质、端粒和多个常染色质位点相关。越来越多的证据表明，HP1的不同定位与多种不同功能有关。事实上，最近的研究表明，HP1不仅在异染色质形成和基因沉默中起作用，还在端粒稳定性和基因表达的正调控中起作用。
